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Dozens of people
left a district of Cote d’Ivoire’s economic capital Abidjan on Sunday,
a day after gun battles between forces backing two presidential rivals.
Residents of the northern Abobo district said clashes between forces
loyal to incumbent president Laurent Gbagbo and those supporting his
rival Alassane Ouattara continued most of Saturday, but had died down
on Sunday.

“People are starting to leave because they fear more combat,” said Issa Dembele, a resident of Abobo. “Personally,

I’m preparing to
evacuate my own family.” The United Nations estimates around 200,000
people – most of Abobo’s population – have left in the past two weeks.
Gbago has refused to step down after a November presidential election,
which Ouattara is recognised internationally as having won.

Forces loyal to
Gbagbo launched an assault on Saturday to drive Ouattara’s fighters out
of the suburb, although residents said those fighters still controlled
several areas. The latest African Union effort to mediate in the
dispute failed this week, adding to fears of a return to civil war in
the world’s top cocoa grower, whose crisis has pushed cocoa futures to
regular 32-year highs CCc2 in recent weeks. Allies of Gbagbo, who
contends the poll was rigged, refused to accept an AU proposal for a
Ouattara-led unity government.

“Things are calm now, apart from gunfire here and there. But people are leaving,” said Abobo resident Tiemoko Souala.

International
sanctions such as a ban on European ships using Ivorien ports, together
with the near-collapse of the local banking sector, mean supplies of
Cote d’Ivoire’s cocoa to world markets have virtually dried up.

Around 400 people
have already been killed in post-election violence according to the
United Nations, while some 450,000 Ivoriens have fled their homes for
fear of attacks. Around 90,000 have sought refuge in neighbouring
Liberia.

reuters

An Action Congress
of Nigeria (ACN) senatorial candidate, Olufemi Lanlehin, has assured on
the party’s intent to adhere strictly to the content of its manifesto
anywhere it is given the mandate to lead in the country.

Mr. Lanlehin, who
will be flying the flag of the party as a candidate for the Oyo South
senatorial constituency in the forthcoming elections, was on
familiarisation tour on some selected wards in Ido Local Government
area of the state, where he informed party members and residents that
the ACN has packaged in its manifesto, programmes that will better the
lot of all Nigerian citizens.

“What the people
should be enjoying in Nigeria is being destroyed by the impostors in
the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP). They are doing that because they
did not get yourvotes to get to power. “We in the ACN have put on paper
what we want to do when we get to power, we have deliberated on them
and we are assuring you that we will do them all,” he said.

Before formally
swinging into full political campaign across the country, the ACN had
launched its manifesto at Abuja where it detailed its plans for the
Nigerian polity.

Mr. Lanlehin also
echoed the views of many Nigerians that votes will count in the next
elections, urging his audience to ensure that they come out and cast
their votes, as well as stay till the votes are counted and results
announced at the booths before leaving.

Meanwhile, the Oyo
South senatorial district wing of the ACN, at the weekend, has
described the recent open debate for governorship candidates in the
state, as a way of helping the state’s electorate in making the right
choice in the next election.

Debate of candidates

The party, in a
release signed by the spokesperson, Wasiu Olatunbosun, noted that
debate brought out the best of all the four candidates who attended.

The debate,
organized by a local radio station, Splash FM, was aired live, but only
four of the contestants, Abiola Ajimobi of the ACN, Adebayo Shittu of
the Congress for Progressive Change (CPC), Taiwo Otegbeye of Action
Alliance (AA) and Azeez Popoola Adeduntan of Labour Party (LP), were in
attendance.

Mr Olatunbosun, in
his release, remarked that the participants ‘clearly demonstrated
competence, maturity and wherewithal required to liberate Oyo State
from its current socio-economic and political quagmire.’ “The public
debate afforded voters the opportunity to access each candidate who had
an ample chance to sell their programmes to the world. The event turned
out a huge success as it was adjudged unprecedented by Nigerians who
wondered why state governor Adebayo Alao-Akala of the PDP and Rashidi
Ladoja of the Accord party stayed away without genui e reasons other
than display of arrogance and debate fever,” he stated further.

Isa Tijjani, a
member the Labour Party, has asked a High Court in Kanoto declare him
the substantive presidential candidate of the party for the 16th April
presidential election.

Mr Aliyu argued
that the court, presided over by Amina Adamu Aliyu has enough evidence
to judge whether the plaintiff should be regarded as the party’s
presidential candidate or not.

Council to the
plaintiff, Nurudeen Jimoh, said Mr Tijjani request was based on the
fact that he was the only person vying for the post and that he
deposited N500,000 for the purchase of an interim nomination form.

Mr Jimoh said when
Mr Tijjani deposited such amount of money, the party failed to even
give him receipt for the period of three month, saying that his client
could not purchase the nomination form because of the failure of Labour
Party to tender such receipt, which was the prerequisite of obtaining
the permanent nomination form.

He explained that
his client and Dele Momodu were the two people aspiring for the
presidential seat under the Labour Party, but due to internal problems
Mr Momodu withdrew, making him the sole candidate.

He expressed concern that the party is trying to frustrate his client, the same way it frustrated Mr Momodu.

No room for a candidate

But counsel to the
party and the Party Chairman, Biodun Fasakin said the plaintiff did not
fulfil requirements of the party for him to be nominated as its
presidential candidate. He also said Mr Tijjani did not purchase a
permanent nomination form.

Mr Fasakin,
represented by Suswan Stephen, also said there was no primary election
that presented Mr Jijjani as presidential candidate of the Labour
party. According to him, if the party presents the plaintiff to the
electoral commission as its presidential candidate, people would
question its integrity.

The Labour Party had already endorsed President Goodluck Jonathan as
its presidential candidate and, as such, the party may not probably
field any other candidate for the post.

An open clash
between the Oyo state government and members of the Congress for
Progressive Change (CPC) is imminent in Ibadan today (Monday) following
the decision of the state government to ban the opposition party from
using Mapo Hall, Ibadan for its scheduled presidential rally.

The ancient Mapo
hall is the crux of the matter, as the CPC is insisting that it would
use the hall for its Southwest presidential campaign rally scheduled
for Monday, while the state government seems not favourably disposed to
that. Though the party had paid for the use of the hall, the management
of the centre has proposed a refund, citing an ‘‘order from above” as
an excuse for them to disallow the party from using the venue. They
specifically hinged their reason on the planned visit of Patience
Jonathan, wife of the President to the state on Tuesday (the following
day).

However, Yinka
Odumakin, spokesperson to the CPC presidential candidate, Muhamadu
Buhari, said yesterday that since the party had complied with the
existing laws of the land, the rally will hold as earlier scheduled. He
said his group would not succumb to any form of intimidation from the
ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP). ‘‘They (the PDP) have denied us
venues in Niger and Adamawa states. There comes a time when ‘enough is
enough,” Mr Odumakin said. “We ask President Jonathan to hold the
leash on his attack dogs as it smacks of hypocrisy for him to be
pretending to be calling peace parleys with other presidential
candidates while his agents are working against peace. We wish to sound
it loud and clear again that all these shenanigans will not stop the
Buhari/Bakare hurricane that is blowing away the umbrella of deception
all over Nigeria.”

On time

Positing that the
president had buried the mantra of rule of law with the remains of his
predecessor, Umar Musa Yar’Adua, Mr. Odumakin stated that the CPC
viewed the development as a furtherance of abuse of power of incumbency
by the present administration. “We want Nigerians to help us ask if
Mrs. Patience Jonathan will ask somebody not to hold a wedding ceremony
at an event centre because she intends using the place the following
day if she were a private citizen,” he said.

The state
government blamed the ‘‘lack of organisation” of the state chapter of
the party for the disagreement.But Mr Odumakin disagreed with the state
government’s defence that the CPC caused the development by changing
the date of its rally several times, insisting that the party booked
the hall for March 14, 2011.

The spokesperson
made available to the press the receipt of the payment to contradict
‘‘the false account of the Oyo state government”.

The Ondo State
Governor, Olusegun Mimiko at the weekend offered automatic employment
opportunities for students from the state who bagged First Class
honours at the state-owned university, the Adekunle Ajasin University,
Akungba Akoko (AAUA).

The governor also
instituted two prizes for his late father, Atiku Bamidele Mimiko and
the former governor of the state, Adebayo Adefarati for best graduating
students of the institution in Political Science and Entrepreneurship.
The highlight of the 3rd Convocation ceremony is the presentation of
awards to the 17 graduating students who bagged first class degrees out
of 6,688 students. Five students bagged their Doctors of Philosophy
degrees (PhDs) at the institution.

Mr Mimiko, who is
also the Visitor to the institution, said his administration would
continue to provide conducive environment for learning and appealed to
the students to cooperate with the institution’s authorities. He said
his government had given support to the varsity authorities in terms of
staff welfare, adding that in the first quarter of 2010, funds was
promptly released to the institution to commence payment of the new
salary package in line with the federal government’s agreement with
university tutors.

“The state is a reference point among other state universities on this issue,” he said.

Global ambition

While reeling out
various developmental projects that his administration had earmarked
for the overall development of the institution and make it a reference
point in the nation, he said he is instituting two prizes for
outstanding students of the varsity beginning from the next convocation
ceremony.

“The first is
personal while the second is official. In honour of my late father ,
and on behalf of his children, I hereby institute the Atiku Bamidele
Mimiko Memorial Prize for the best graduating student in Political
Science, the degree programme that I am told offers courses in
contemporary international relations which was undoubtedly my late
father’s passion while he was alive. In the days ahead, enough seed
money to enable the winner of this prize every year to take home an
amount not less than N100, 000 shall be made available to the
University by the children of the late AB Mimiko.

“The second prize
is to a man who himself was not an entrepreneur in the exact sense of
being a business creator. He was of that noble profession, teaching;
and he wasn’t just an outstanding teacher and school administrator, but
also a success in politics and governance-something he chose as a
vocation. I, on behalf of the Ondo State Government, institute a prize
that shall, at every Convocation, be awarded to the overall best
graduating student in entrepreneurship in the University. The prize
shall therefore be called and known as The Governor Adebayo Adefarati
Memorial Prize for the best Graduating Student in Entrepreneurship. It
shall attract an amount not less than N100,000.00 every year.”

The institution’s
Vice Chancellor, Femi Mimko said the institution is committed to
delivering 21st century university education whose graduates are
globally marketable. “We seek a University that predicates its entire
operations on established age-long ethos, traditions, conventions and
culture of the university system,” he said. “It is in pursuits of this
that early this year, we had a university-wide workshop on
understanding the system and culture of university.”

The governor of
Ondo State, Olusegun Mimiko, has warned politicians preparing to rig
the April polls and fanning the embers of violence to desist from such
acts or face the wrath of the law.

Mr.Mimiko, who
disclosed this while receiving some defectors from the Peoples
Democratic Party (PDP) in Okitipupa, advised the political parties that
would participate in the April polls to contest according to the rules
of the game.

“We were all aware
how election was rigged in this State in 2007. How they snatched ballot
boxes and other materials at gunpoint and falsify results,” Mr. Mimiko
said.

“We all remember
how all manners of people who have died, like late founder of the
Christ Apostolic Church, Apostle Ayo Babalola; foreigners, including
the American pugilist, Mike Tyson, top government officials in the
nation, infants, stones, trees, curtains and even dogs and goats voted
for the ousted government until we went to court to get them booted
out,” he said.

“Okitipupa was one
of the worst place were such heinous crimes took place. But we are
happy today that our people are wiser, they have seen what it means to
have a government chosen by them and one with a caring heart, one that
is bringing the dividends of democracy to our dear State.

“We want to warn
those planning to rig election next month to perish the thought or be
ready to face the full wrath of the law. Never again would there be
democracy at gunpoint in Ondo State, the best candidate must be allowed
to represent us.”

Stay focused

Mr. Mimiko noted
that the era of do-or-die politics had gone in Ondo State because his
administration would not close its eyes and watch some desperate
politicians who are bent on stealing votes by all means to turn the
state into a battle ground in their quest to return and continue their
mission of milking the state dry.

He said in just two
years in office, his administration executed over 266 community-based
developmental projects in different parts of the state and assured the
electorate to expect more positive actions from his government in the
second half of this tenure.

The Labour Party
National Chairman, Dan Nwanyanwu praised the party leaders in the South
Senatorial Zone for their remarkable leadership qualities which he
described as one of the factors that attracted more devotees into the
party.

He urged the new
members to contribute their wealth of experience and work for the
success of the party in the forthcoming election saying that the party
remains focused in its resolve to make the state a reference point in
the nation.

The Federal Government and Dangote Foundation at the
weekend floated a business and development fund to help provide soft
loans at single digits interest rates to micro, small and medium scale
entrepreneurs in the country.

The Bank of Industry (BoI), on behalf of the Federal
Government, would contribute N2.5bn into the fund, just as Dangote
Foundation , with a pledge to both increase their contribution in
future, to help realize the objective of the National Economic Growth
Strategy. The strategy is designed to enhance economic growth, sustain
macro-economic stability, diversify the country’s economic base by
creating the environment for inclusive growth as well as facilitate job
creation by removing barriers to increased productivity and create up
to about 1.5 million new jobs.

Minister of Finance, Olusegun Aganga, told reporters
in Abuja that the Fund would provide term and working capital loans,
leasing of industrial/business equipment as well as trading and allied
businesses, which would be accessed at the overall interest rate of 5
percent, though, adding that Dangote’s contribution is a grant that
does not attract any interest charge.

Describing the Fund as a good example of how the
private and public sectors could collaborate to create the environment
for Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) to thrive and create jobs, the
Minister explained that the BOI’s contribution is about 10 percent,
while that of Dangote Foundation is an interest-free grant targeted at
the labour intensive sectors of the economy. The sectors to benefit
from the fund include agriculture, which currently accounts for more
than 40 percent of gross domestic product (GDP), while 60 percent would
go for the creation of employment in the manufacturing and building as
well as construction. “The initiative is complementary to government
strategy for financial inclusion and enterprise development targeted at
Small and Growing Businesses (SGBs) in critical sectors of the economy,
such as food processing, tourism, building & construction, ICT and
entertainment,” he said.

Apart from providing the capital, the BOI is also
working with the Lagos Business School (LBS), Small and Medium
Enterprises Development Agency of Nigeria (SMEDAN) and other 22
enterprise development centres in the country to help train over 1,000
businesses and help develop their business ideas into bankable plans.

Guidelines for loan

20 industrial clusters are to be developed at
different locations across the country and provided with $500 million
seed debt capital at single digit interest rate channelled through BOI
and Nigerian Export-Import (NEXIM) Bank specifically for SGBs. The
collaboration with the BOI and the LBS, the Minister explained,
followed findings from banks that the high rate failure among SGBs was
as a result of high cost of running the businesses, apart from the
notion that banks were not interested in lending to such businesses due
to the dearth of bankable and profitable business plans as well as
collateral. Meanwhile, the BOI and NEXIM Bank have released the
guidelines for accessing the $200 million fund by the Federal
Government dedicated to the entertainment sector. Already, it gathered
that several applications have already been received from prospective
beneficiaries of the loan under the Growth and Employment Programme
(GEP), while arrangements are at advanced stage to establish a
strategic advisory board for the entertainment sector to develop
strategic framework and roadmap for the sustainable development of the
industry.

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The Conference of
Nigeria Political Parties (CNPP) has condemned what it described as
serial arrests of perceived political opponents of President Goodluck
Jonathan, who is also the presidential candidate of the ruling Peoples
Democratic Party (PDP).

The spokesperson
for the CNPP, Osita Okechukwu said in Abuja on Sunday that it is
lamentable that agents of the federal government have been arresting
opponents of the PDP while they are unable to fish out those who
attempted to kill other members of the opposition.

It said that the
arrests and detention of the opposition figures have put to question
the cherished freedom of Nigerians and the often- pronounced commitment
of the president to free, fair and transparent polls next month.

The group listed
members of the opposition who have been arrested to include Umaru
Al-Mukura and Hassan Lawal of Congress for Progressive Change (CPC) as
well as officials of the Northern Political Leaders Forum, Bello
Abdulkadir and Farouk Bibi Farouk.

The CNPP said it
believes that instead of detention, the accused should be charged to
court and their charges made known to the public, adding that Mr Farouk
has spent over 48 hours in detention without being charged to court.

“CNPP is yet to
locate from the security agencies the final report of the murder of
Bola Ige, Harry Marshal, Uche Ogbonna and other high profile murder or
the arrest of prominent politicians in the recent murder of Modu Gubio,
the gubernatorial candidate of All Nigeria Peoples Party (ANPP) in
Borno State,” he said.

“Yet, so far, no
member or supporter of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has been
arrested, even those who spent $16 billion on power and N300 billion on
road construction without commensurate result and who are today leading
President Jonathan’s campaign.”

Free to criticise

The group, which
restated that democracy without freedom is a sham, also reminded Mr
Jonathan that the relative freedom achieved in the past years should
not be sacrificed on the alter of overzealous security operatives.

“President Jonathan should resist picking needless fights, therefore
all high profile murder should be fully investigated and the report
made public and all suspects should be charged to court without further
delay; as anything to the contrary gives wrong impression that the
security agencies are witch-hunting only the political enemies of Mr
President,” Mr Okechukwu said.

Embattled Ogun State governor, Gbenga Daniel,
yesterday said that the booing he got from the crowd during the
presidential campaign rally of the People’s Democratic Party in
Abeokuta over the weekend, was a premeditated plan sponsored by his
political enemies within the party. Although Mr. Daniel has reached a
compromise with his major foe and former president, Olusegun Obasanjo,
it seems as though the Ogun state governor still remains a despised
figure within the party. Even though he was the host governor, Mr.
Daniel was not even allowed to make a speech or given any official role
to play by the state chapter of the party at the rally which took place
at the 35,000-capacity Moshood Abiola Stadium. After weeks of fighting,
Mr. Daniel, last Friday, recognised Tunji Olurin as the candidate of
the party in the state. Some of Mr. Daniel’s supporters, including his
favoured governorship candidate, Gboyega Isiaka, defected from the PDP
to join the People’s Party of Nigeria, but their plans also foundered
as the INEC refused to substitute their names with those earlier
forwarded by the party. Mr. Daniel has also had to shelve his
senatorial ambition, as his name was not on the list of candidates
approved by INEC.

Enemy turned friend

Mr. Obasanjo had to step in to plead for the state
governor, advising party members to show respect for the Ogun governor
despite whatever misgivings they might have about him. But Mr. Daniel,
in a statement issued by his spokesperson, Gbenro Adebanjo, yesterday
said investigations had shown that those who carried out the act were
hired.

“For the avoidance of doubt, we want to put it on
record that there was nothing spontaneous about the disrespectful act
to the person and office of the governor of Ogun State,” the statement
read. “It was a premeditated act by sponsors of the ignoble act who,
having failed to get Mr. Daniel not to attend the event, decided to
embarrass him at the venue. They had hired some undesirable elements
mainly from outside the state and briefed them to heckle the governor
during the event.”

Opposition party reacts

The PPN also described the incident as a show of
shame by leaders of the PDP. Raheem Ajayi, the party’s publicity
secretary, said the insults meted out to the incumbent governor
justified “our recent action of leaving the PDP for a more decent and
democratic platform…”

Mr. Ajayi said that it was time all parties played
the politics of principles and decency to advance the present
democratic order.

“It is for this reason that we call on the PDP in Ogun State to
apologise to the governor, the government, as well as the good people
of Ogun State for the unruly behaviour of the rented crowd brought from
the neighbouring state,” he said.

The family of the
late leader of Afenifere, Abraham Adesanya, at the weekend said that
President Goodluck Jonathan’s display of humility in his leadership of
the country had endeared him to all and that Nigeria needed such a
leader.

Mr. Jonathan was in
the Adesanyas’ Apapa family house at the weekend to commiserate with
the family over the death of its matriarch, Rosanna Arinola Adesanya,
who was the late Adesanya’s wife.

“We appreciate your
visit,” said Modupe Adelaja, the spokesperson for the family. “It is
rare to have a serving president visiting like you have done, they
usually send representatives. It is a sign of humility. It takes
somebody like you to lead the country. You are indeed a leader.”

Mrs. Adelaja, who
recalled that the president had also come in person to comfort the
family after the death of Abraham Adesanya, also described Mr. Jonthan
as a man of few words and prayed that as he marched forward in the
leadership of the country, he would succeed because of his focus.

“God installs leaders and he will install you,” she said.

Businessman and member of the family, Oba Otudeko, declared the total support of the Adesanyas for the president.

He said that even
though members of the family belonged to different parties, “we who are
present here, and those outside, are all resolved that we will do all
that is possible to ensure your election in April”.

Loss to Yoruba

The chief of staff
to the president, Mike Ogiaghome, said that the presidential visit was
to convey the condolences of the federal government, as well as that of
the people, to the Yoruba over the loss of the wife of a late leader of
the Yoruba and a great fighter for democracy. Mr. Jonathan said his
visit was to encourage the family and wish them well on the loss of
their mother.

“We feel your pain and you will remain in our prayers,” Mr. Jonathan
said. “Mama lived a good Christian life and worked with her husband to
bring about change in our society. Death is an inevitable end we all
will get to someday.”